[sdiy] when the going gets weird the weird turn pro (battery power)

[Roy J. Tellason]

On Thursday 02 August 2007 02:35, Anthony Bisset wrote:
> Hallo,
>
> Last week I experienced a PSU failure and am wondering if my wiring is to
> blame?  The unhappy PSU has two +12 / G outputs.  I bridge one of the +12v
> to the ground of the other +12 output and then used the bridged connection
> as ground giving +12 and -12 at both ends with ground on the bridge. This
> worked fine for maybe one month.  Anyway, the supply is no longer
> supplying the necessary current to be useful, however the voltage is
> still there...
>
> Is connecting single sided supplies in series like this and then tapping
> the center as ground a bad recipe?  I'm wondering if in a pinch I could
> use 2 car batteries (fused of course) to get +/-12 and ground?
>
> car batteries at 80amp hours minimum is not bad and i could do 5 or 6
> hours of modular playing in the park without needing to recharge or is
> there something wrong with this picture?

Car batteries are NOT meant for this type of application,  and won't last.  
You want either deep-cycle ("trolling motor") batteries or gel cells...

-- 
Member of the toughest, meanest, deadliest, most unrelenting -- and
ablest -- form of life in this section of space,  a critter that can
be killed but can't be tamed.  --Robert A. Heinlein, "The Puppet Masters"
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